Icy Troubles
by Sasuke vs. Itachi
Summary: Gray is good at hiding emotions. One day Lucy notices one odd little thing and is a little concerned but brushes it off until Lyon visits the guild. Now Lucy, Natsu, and Lyon are all worried. Not Sequel to Icy Brothers.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary:** Gray is good at hiding emotions. One day Lucy notices one odd little thing and is a little concerned but brushes it off until Lyon visits the guild. Now Lucy, Natsu, and Lyon are all worried.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not and never will own Fairy Tail or the characters

 **Note** : Well I have another Lyon and Gray brother fic now and it is still in the same timeline as the other one. Now I have actually gotten a lot further in the manga than the Orion Seis time, I am actually around where Gray vs. Silver and all that. However, this time area works for my purposes best, at least I think. All mistakes are my own. I believe that's all I got for now, so on with the story, enjoy!

 **~FTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFTFT~**

Lucy let out a yawn as she pushed open the guild doors. She was greeted with the sight of surprising peace and few guild members as she was up way earlier than she would have liked. The guild hadn't been opened too long either. With another yawn, she sat down at the bar in front of Mirajane; who was wiping down a glass. Mirajane giggled at Lucy's yawning and asked her if she wanted something to drink, possibly coffee. Lucy gave the demon take-over mage a pleading look and sighed "please." With another giggle, Mira poured Lucy a fresh cup of coffee. The celestial mage grabbed the coffee mug with both hands holding it close to her chest like it was her favorite book. After Lucy downed about half the mug, she took a look around the guild noticing that a few more members had trickled in by now. Cana was at a table already drinking from her barrel of alcohol. Macao and Wakaba were sitting near Cana, talking. Bisca and Alzack were in a corner together, making eyes at each other. Reedus was drawing and Warren and Max were around somewhere. "Thank goodness the loudest of our members haven't drop in yet," thought Lucy, "I don't think I could take that this early in the morning." Right after that thought Gray came flying in, took one look at the job bulletin, grab a paper from it and came over to Mira telling her what job he was taking and then left without even seeming to have seen Lucy or anyone else for that matter. Lucy looked to Mira in confusion and asked "Mira, what was that?"

Mira, confused, wondered "What do you mean Lucy?"

Lucy replied "What was with Gray, why did he leave so quickly and he took a job by himself, I didn't think he has done that since we formed team Natsu?"

Mira replied, thoughtfully, "I believe he always takes a mission by himself this day and he usually leaves very early, I'm not sure of the exact reason. He also isn't usually back for a while, doesn't matter if the mission is a day long or not, he probably won't be back for a couple days at least."

Lucy, thinking out loud, "That's kind of odd, isn't it?"

Mira shrugged "All Fairy Tail members have quirks."

Lucy nodded in agreement but still thought that it was very odd thing for Gray to do, but she had not known him as long as someone like Mira and she was probably overthinking it as it was. However, she couldn't quite let go of a pin prick of worry she had ever since what went down on Galuna Island, though that had been a while and they had just defeated the Orion Seis group not too long ago now and she hadn't seen Gray acting in a worrisome manner. Her thoughts were interrupted as a flying bottle hitting her in the back of the head, knocking her into the counter. Groaning, as she rubbed the back of her head, she looked over to see a brawl with Natsu, Elfman, Gajeel and some others was taking place. She had to wonder how she had been that lost in thought to have not heard them come in and decided that she really needed to focus more if she was to survive this guild.

The guild continued on as normally as they were for a few more hours when Lyon entered the guild. He didn't say anything to anyone and seemed to be looking for someone, who he apparently didn't find as he turned back around and was about to head out without a word when Natsu called out "What are you doing here silver ice-block, you want to fight?"

Lyon turned back with an icy reply, "No, not with you. And I was looking for Gray but I can see he's not here. However, he wasn't at his place either."

Hearing that Lucy spoke up, "I saw him take a job earlier this morning, he seemed in a hurry, he didn't even notice me."

Lucy noticed a flash of worry in Lyon's eyes when she finished speaking but it was there and gone so fast that she couldn't be sure of what she saw. Lyon replied, blank faced, "Oh, well that's a shame, I missed him. Do you know where he went?"

Lucy shook her head no and then Mira spoke up "I know where the job he took is at, but I believe he wants to go alone since he came so early and didn't ask anyone else to join, so is there a reason you want to know?"

Lyon stiffly replied, "Can't I just want to catch up with an old friend? I don't get much time away from Lamia Scale and so I don't really want to go back without getting to see Gray."

Lucy thought that sounded kind of normal but there was just something off about his reply and Mira seemed to feel that too as she said, "No, not a good enough answer."

Lyon bit his lip and stared at the ground like it held all the answers, for a long while, in thought and the feeling Lucy had earlier was coming back tenfold as she waited for his answer. Natsu was getting impatient and a little worried (though he would never admit it) and he was just about to grab Lyon by the collar and demand an answer when Lyon spoke, "Well today is the anniversary of Ur's death." Natsu and Lucy froze for a moment remembering the story from Galuna Island, then Natsu's hands turned into fireballs as he growled "That bastard! Never said anything!"

 **~tbc~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Me no own Fairy Tail nor the characters. Simply borrowing.

 **Note:** This chapter is not too exciting yet but it needs the little details, I'm never really good at the little details. However, I tried to make it decent, hopefully I did. Now on with the story. Enjoy!

"Nononono! I'm not getting on that train; I'll walk or run to the town!" Exclaimed Natsu

Lucy sighed in exasperation, "Natsu Mira said that the town Gray's job is in is at least several hours by train it will take way too long for you by foot and we will miss the chance of catching up with Gray."

The pink-haired mage groaned, "Where is Happy when I need him, then I could fly there."

"Happy took a mission with Charla and Wendy; anyways he wouldn't be able to fly you that far and you know it." The celestial mage huffed.

Lyon had been watching their antics in confusion and slight wonder. He just had to ask, "What is the flame-brain's problem, exactly?"

Natsu growled at the insult, "What was that you freaking ice-prick," his body glowed with his fire magic and he would have probably attacked had Lucy not punch him in the head and told Lyon, "Natsu gets motion sickness on any kind of transportation besides flying."

Now if Lucy was expecting sympathy or empathy of any kind she was very wrong. Lyon burst out laughing, and Lucy came to the conclusion that Lyon was similar to Gray in regards to Natsu, maybe it was a fire and ice kind of thing. Lucy's thoughts were interrupted as Natsu's fiery fist launched towards Lyon's face. Lyon barely dodged Natsu's attack but was quick to counter attack with an ice eagle or two. Which of course led to an all-out brawl. Lucy wasn't sure how to stop them or get their attention, as they really did not have much time to play around. The blonde was wishing that Erza had come with them for she would be able to stop them, then it struck her and she waved her hand and shouted "Hey Erza, what are you doing here!?"

This got Natsu attention quickly and he froze on the spot. Lyon froze in confusion and Lucy took this chance and grabbed Natsu by his scarf and dragged him on the train. Lyon stood for a moment wondering what exactly had happened before shrugging it off and following the other mages on the train. It did not take long after the train started moving for Natsu to get queasy and wishing he could get off. Lyon shook his head and scoffed "pathetic, really pathetic." Which led to Natsu trying to punch the ice mage and hugging the floor instead. After a bit, Lucy managed to drag them to a compartment and sit; gaining more and more respect for Erza as she went. After a couple of hours Natsu had finally succumb to sleep; which left Lucy trying to talk to Lyon who wasn't really much of a talker, especially on this day. However, as Lucy was trying to ask him about his guild and friends he interrupted with "What are we going to do once we reach the town; what was the name…Kinrei, near Mt. Hakobe, right?" Lucy nodded her head and Lyon continued, "How exactly are we going to find Gray, there are a lot of places he could be in a city?"

The blonde put a finger to her chin in thought "I believe once we reach town, Natsu could probably pick up Gray's scent, hopefully."

"Oh that's reassuring." Was the sarcastic reply. Lucy huffed "Well, do you have anything better?"

Lyon seemed stuck for a moment and Lucy was about to yell in triumph when he spoke "We could probably ask the mayor of the town, Gray had to have talked with him about the job, correct?"

Sulking, the celestial mage had to agreed that, that might be better though maybe they should try both ways. Lucy was about to continue trying to engage Lyon in conversation when she caught a sad and worried look in his eyes and realize that this day is probably very upsetting for him and on top of that he may be worried for Gray as well as she was. After that they fell into a slightly comfortable silence for the remainder of the trip.

When they finally reached Kinrei it was early evening. Lucy and Lyon had just dragged the dragon slayer off the train; after a couple minutes Natsu was back to his normal self and kissed the ground in gratitude. The mages made their way towards the mayor's office and as they went Natsu was sniffing the air in hopes of catching Gray's scent as Lucy had suggested earlier. They were close to the office when Natsu caught a scent of his rival on a passing breeze. The fire mage quickly ran off in the direction the scent was leading, the other mages following behind.

* * *

Icy shards fell to the ground as Gray's ice shield shattered. He was in a bit of a pickle, the enemy outnumbered him five to one and they were all very competent mages. His body was battered and bleeding, they had caught him off-guard. However, the injuries didn't bother him, in fact he relished the pain, he had actually been sloppy and let some of the attacks hit. He needed the pain today of all days, part of the reason he took a job this hard. He had already had too much time to think about today and really was glad for the painful distraction; after all physical pain was better and easier to handle. He saw a punch coming towards his stomach but didn't move as the punch connected. He gasped and bent over in pain but grabbed onto the arm that punched him and froze the opponent; one down, four to go. He managed to get back to his feet in time to dodge one mage and block another. However, as he had blocked one mage, another one shot magical bullets in his direction. Gray barely managed to dodge that attack but the last mage saw an opening and hit him with a windy blade attack. Sending the ice mage flying, hitting his back on a tree trunk and landing on the ground with a painful thud.

The enemy mages had surrounded Gray by the time he was able to lift his head. Gray wondered then if this was the time he would die, he knew he could not defend against them all at once and he was really too injured and tired to move anyways. Honestly, he couldn't really bring himself to care if this was the end or not. Gray closed his eyes in acceptance of his fate, waiting for the final blow. However, he never felt it, what he did feel was intense heat along with icy wind. He opened his tired eyes to see Natsu and Lyon in front of him fiery red and icy blue magic surrounding them. They threw the enemy mages back in their anger. Gray felt a hand on his shoulder and look up to see Lucy beside him and Virgo out and ready to fight. Gray didn't know what to make of this, torn between anger, guilt, and disbelief at still being alive and relief, maybe even a little happiness at not being dead and seeing his friends. Really he couldn't pinpoint any one emotion, it was all too much and he was so tired, sore, and confused; he just really needed to stop thinking. With that thought he closed his eyes and passed out.

 **~tbc~**

 **Note:** Any and all reviews, favorites and follows are appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fairy Tail, that belongs to Hiro Mashima

 **Note:** So sorry for the long wait, I got busy and then somewhat forgot about the story. Thanks to all those who reviewed, favorite, and followed; I really appreciate the support. All mistakes are my own. Hopefully this chapter is worth the wait. Now, on with the story, enjoy!

* * *

Loud voices broke through the complete darkness, bringing Gray back towards reality. "Hey wake up already ice-prick!" Natsu's obnoxious voice; there was a resounding "Thwack" heard followed by Lucy's angry voice "Quit yelling you moron! That doesn't help."

Gray tried to block out the voices and return to dark bliss; however, he felt someone shaking him. Gray reacted by instinct, sitting up and shoving whoever was shaking him. He then groaned in pain of being jolted awake. The ice mage took a moment to get his bearings as the pain settled down. He saw he was in a hospital with Lyon, Lucy, and Natsu. He was about to ask what happened until the memories started coming back about the job he was doing along with the fact that he had been alone for a reason and then his teammates and Lyon showed up.

Natsu hopped up from where he landed after Gray had unexpectedly shoved him. The dragon slayer was about to yell at the stripper again when Lucy managed to get a hand over his mouth and pulled him back, nearly chocking the fire mage in the process.

Gray ignored his teammates antics as he tried to push himself off the bed to leave. So focused, was he, on his intent to escape that he forgot about Lyon; who ran to his side and pushed him back to keep him from leaving the bed. Gray was about to protest when Lyon angrily questioned, "What were you thinking, taking on a mission like that without help!?"

Natsu and Lucy turned their attention to the ice mages, wanting to hear an answer. All three mages stared at Gray, waiting for a reply; however, it didn't look like Gray was going to reply as he just glared out the window at the setting evening sun. A few minutes passed in complete silence; Natsu impatient as he was, opened his mouth to demand an answer. He was stopped as Gray, still avoiding looking at his friends, growled, "It's none of your business!"

At that Natsu's anger exploded once again and he launched forward, grabbing Gray's necklace and pulling him to his face. Natsu yelled, "Don't give me that crap! We know what this day is!"

Gray seemed to shut down at those words and just stared at the dragon slayer's shoulder, not bothering with a reply. As moments went by, the heat went up in the room and Natsu started glowing red. However before things could get out of hand, once again, an icy tiger took Natsu out from the side and sent him flying away from Gray. Lyon stepped up beside Gray and glared at the fire mage, saying, "Back off, hot-head. You really don't help matters. Gray isn't strong enough to fight with you right now."

Natsu, shakily, got back up and stared at the sliver-headed mage for a moment then shot towards him in a fiery rage. Lyon moved away from Gray and prepare to block the fire mage's attack; however, a hi-pitched, ear-splitting yell from the blonde-haired mage made both freeze. "You are both morons!" panted an enraged Lucy, "Can you guys not fight in here!? We don't have much room and you nearly hit Gray, who has fallen back asleep just so you know."

Lyon and Natsu stared at the celestial mage in stunned horror and just nodded numbly in agreement to her demand/question. Lyon then turned to Natsu and mentioned, "Well, I thought she was the sane one between you Fairy Tail people but it seems I was wrong, she's crazy too."

Lucy's cheeks puffed out in anger and she shook her fist at him in rage and, when Natsu nodded in solemn agreement with Lyon, steam came out her ears. She would have charged toward Natsu had she wanted to be a hypocrite and as moronic as the boys. As it was, she managed to keep from lashing out. Not too long after Lucy calmed down and silence reigned, a nurse came in. She told the mages that they would let Gray out tomorrow morning and that since he was sleeping they should go get some rest for the night somewhere. After a few moments of internal debates, the mages all decided to go to a hotel for the night though a bit reluctantly.

* * *

Not too long after the door closed behind the last of his friends, Gray opened his eyes and, within a few minutes, managed to slip out of the hospital. Gray had barely made it out the door when suddenly he was pulled to a deserted area outside so quickly it made his head spin and took him a moment (once they stopped) to figure out it was Lyon who caught him off-guard. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask how but Lyon saved him the trouble when he said, "You really think I would fall for an act like that, I'm not as slow as that flame-brain nor as naive as Lucy. Now are you going to talk to me or keep up the silent act?"

Keeping with his silent act, there was no reply from Gray, however; he was nearly screaming in his head, "Damn, I forgot Lyon would catch on faster. Why can't they leave me alone! I'm fine, just need more time to myself. Need to get away from them. Why does Lyon even want to be around me, especially today? Doesn't he blame me still?" With all of his frantic thoughts, none of them showed on his face.

Lyon, unaware of Gray's thoughts and definitely not a mind reader, (though he really wished he was for this reason) used this silent time to study Gray's face, trying to find answers there. The only thing he noticed was slight pain and that could be physical for all he knew. During this Lyon came to realize that Gray most likely wouldn't tell him anything even if he asked nicely or if they stood here forever. Heck, Gray wouldn't even tell his rival much less him, who he had a rocky relationship with after the Galuna Island incident. Then another thought came to him, "maybe Gray still didn't fully forgive him for that, maybe he didn't want to share this day with him. Even if he could understand more than Gray's friends, having been there." That did hit Lyon hard, he thought they were past all that, especially because he really did want to talk to Gray and help him if possible. With a sad sigh, Lyon decided then and there to leave Gray alone and was turning to leave. He had only gone a few steps when he heard a whisper, "Why are you here? Around me today?"

Lyon was stunned to speechlessness, he couldn't believe what he heard, surely he misheard. The sliver-headed mage was so shocked that a few minutes passed until Lyon shook his head and spun around to face Gray, who was looking at the ground. He managed a chocked, "What...are you serious?" Gray still didn't look up but flinched at Lyon's words. "Gray.." Lyon sadly murmured; however before he could say anymore both mages were suddenly surrounded.

The enemy mages from earlier were back, Lyon knew one of them should have chased those guys down after they ran off. They were pissed off and looking for revenge. Lyon cursed out loud, this was not the time, Gray was in no shape for a fight and they needed to talk. Lyon positioned himself closer to Gray and activated his magic. Facing one mage that looked to be in charge, Lyon demanded "What do you want!?"

The mage menacingly, replied, "Payback, of course."

Lyon growled and then he felt Gray's magic start up in response to the threat; however, Lyon knew he wouldn't have much to use. They would either have to make this a quick fight or Lyon would have to take on most of them. Whichever way, Lyon was determined to protect Gray; he wouldn't let them hurt his kohai, not if he could help it. Especially since he needed to fix this misunderstanding with Gray, he didn't want anything to happen before he got a chance to fix this. His magic flared as angered determination shone in his eyes and he prepared to fight.

 **~TBC~**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail, not even one character :P

 **Note:** First off, I am so sorry about the long wait, I got stuck for sometime and I really don't think this is one of my best stories. I have to say I don't like this one as much as others I have done. I will most definitely finish this story. I hope this chapter is good enough to make up for the waiting. Also just to know, I don't plan on having any romance in this story, I'm not really good with writing that stuff anyways. It is all friendship, close friendship with Natsu and Lucy and brothership with Lyon, though you are welcome to see how you want to see it. Thank you to those that follow, favorite, and review. Now, on with the story. Please enjoy!

* * *

The evening sun was set low in the sky about to do down for the night. The clouds highlighted in pink and orange with a blue backdrop, it was a wonderful sunset to be sure. However, the scene below was not so peaceful; tension was in the air. Icy blue and green magic was coming off of two mages with a light mist surrounding them. One mage with dark blue-almost black hair and another with silver hair stood back to back, surrounded by no more than half a dozen mages.

The atmosphere shifted as the fight broke out. The surrounding mages attacked as one, trying to hit the ice mages from every direction. Gray created an icy dome, covering both the mages from all attacks. Unfortunately, the dome broke right after the attacks hit as Gray was low on magic and couldn't hold it for long. Lyon felt Gray slump a little and knew that bit of magic cost Gray. So, wasting no time, the silver-headed mage cast a snow dragon. The dragon lashed out at the enemy and circled around the ice mages, protectively. The enemy mages hopped out of the dragon's path. Gray followed up Lyon's attack, sweeping his hands in a circular motion and sending icy spikes towards the enemy. The icy spikes were shot out in the dragon's wake that kept circling the ice mages. A few of the enemy mages cried out in pain, a spike jutting out from their leg or arm.

However, Gray was quickly tiring and after a few more minutes of fighting he had to stop, panting and barely able to stand. Upon seeing that Lyon, quickly, using much of his magic, created a massive icy strike, making their enemy jump back a ways and even taking some of them out.

Using the opening he made, Lyon turned to Gray's side; throwing the younger man's arm around his shoulder, they moved away from the danger as fast as they could. However, one of the mages caught them off guard; sending the duo flying into the side of a building.

Jumping back to his feet swiftly, adrenaline and the need to protect had the older ice mage up and searching for the mage that had attacked as Gray groaned in pain from colliding with the building. Lyon was staying in front of the younger mage on the defensive. Once he noticed the enemy wasn't making an appearance yet, Lyon turned his attention to helping Gray stand up.

"I need to get you to safety."

Lyon stated as he held Gray up by his shoulders. Gray shook his head, whether to clear it or to disagree Lyon wasn't sure. Lyon was distracted with trying to find a safe area to take the younger ice mage to, when Gray suddenly shoved the silver-haired mage away. Lyon let out a surprised gasp as he was knocked aside, he then gaped as a magical bullet shot through Gray's abdomen.

Lyon stared in horror as Gray fell back clutching his abdomen. Seeing the young mage, his kohai, fall snapped him back into action. The silver ice mage turned around in time to block the punch from the last one of the enemy mages (the one who seemed to be the leader). Enraged, Lyon attacked mercilessly, quickly destroying the other mage. The infuriated mage was going to strike a most likely killing blow, when a pained moan from Gray stopped him,

"Lyon, don't."

The older mage stopped and went over to Gray's side. Looking over the injured area and freezing it to stop the blood flow. Lyon was beyond relieved that the injury wasn't fatal or too bad, he then voiced,

"You should probably go back to the hospital and get checked out again."

Gray took in a pained breath but shook his head no. Lyon sighed but decided not to fight him, mostly because he wanted to keep a close eye on the younger one himself. Plus, Gray's injuries, while not little, weren't life threatening, more he just needed to rest and recover his magic.

So, the duo made their way back to where Natsu, Lucy, and Lyon were staying; with Lyon helping an exhausted Gray hobble on. As night had now fully fallen, there wasn't many, if any, people out and about. So the ice mages were walking down the deserted road when Lyon spoke up, making sure to catch Gray's eyes,

"Gray, what you asked earlier—why do you think I wouldn't want to be around you?... I know we didn't talk much after the Galuna island incident, but you do know I don't want you to die, right?"

Gray tuned aside, avoiding Lyon's eyes and they continued on in tense silence for so long that Lyon was wondering if Gray may have fallen asleep or was ignoring him. He decided it was most likely the latter; honestly, did Lyon really believe that Gray would open up to him just because they aren't fighting each other anymore. He was wondering how else he could get through to Gray when the younger mage broke the silence, pausing in their shuffle to the hotel, murmuring,

"I know you don't want that but Lyon can you actually say you don't blame me for what happened?"

Gray paused for a moment, perhaps waiting on a reply from Lyon, maybe just lost in thought. However, just before Lyon was about to speak up, to try and reassure Gray (though he wasn't sure how); Gray continue, the words seeming to have broken a damn as more spilled from the ice mage's mouth.

"Actually, I know you can't; I can't stop blaming myself, I know you can't or at least you shouldn't be able to say that. I shouldn't have asked, forget it. I don't see how you want to spend time with me on the anniversary of a death I was the cause of, your beloved master. Did you ever forgive me for that? Could you ever?"

Lyon regarded his kohai, his little brother, sadly; his heart breaking for the young ice mage who he tried and helped to destroy. But no more, he resolved that he wasn't going to hurt him anymore; and he was set on helping Gray as much as he could.

"Gray…." Lyon paused for a moment, unsure of what to say, he didn't want to screw this up—couldn't afford to. He reached out and, gently, lifted Gray's chin up to meet his eyes.

"Gray, I'll admit, I blamed you for a long time for Ur's death and I wasn't even too thrilled when Ur first took you in. I didn't like the idea of having to share Ur with some random kid, but I grew to like having you around until Ur's death. Yes, I did blame you and hated you for her death and it did take the incident on Galuna Island for things to change. But I've come to realize that there is only so much blame to go around and Ur made her own choices, she didn't have to go after you but she did. And, honestly, I don't regret her choice or sacrifice; I'm glad she saved you and that you're still here. You've become family to me, little brother."

Lyon really hoped he said the right thing and that it would be enough. He let that sink in for a moment as they continued on their way before adding,

"I wanted to spend this day with you because we both knew and cared about Ur and I didn't want to spend it alone again nor did I want you to."

"And I wanted to make sure you'd be alright" thought Lyon, keeping those words to himself lest he upset Gray or something.

Lyon knew there was more that needed to be said and talked about. More about Gray's way of dealing with stuff and the issues he still has, such as, his self-hatred and self-worth issues. However, they had reached their destination and Natsu and Lucy were rushing out to greet them. Those two must have been watching out for them.

Lucy was quick to pick up on the strange air around the other two mages and the fact that Gray was injured again, and so slowed in her approach. Natsu, on the other hand, didn't notice much right away and ran up, greeting Gray with a punch to the shoulder and a loud question of,

"Hey, what are you doing out of the hospital, ice-prick?"

Before Gray could answer, Natsu picked up on the new injuries the ice stripper had and the uncertainty in the air. Natsu turned to Lyon with a menacing glower and demanded,

"What happened!? You ice-bastard, what did you do?! If you hurt him again, I promise I'll make you pay!"

Lyon was about to defend himself when Gray uttered,

"Leave him alone flame-head. He didn't do anything, I had left the hospital room and he came after me. We then got into a fight with those mages form earlier and Lyon managed to beat them but not before they got in a few hits."

Lyon was shocked and a little disturbed at how good Gray was at understating and how he downplayed his own involvement. Gray didn't mention that he got hurt protecting Lyon or that he had fought them off as best as he could as well. The silver-headed mage had to wonder why Gray didn't tell of his involvement, did his self-hatred go so far as to avoid accepting that he was of any help. That thought made his heart ache for the younger ice mage, especially, since he most likely helped build that self-hatred, blaming attitude.

Lyon's thoughts were disrupted when Gray's head slumped against his shoulder. Lucy suggested they all get some rest once she saw that. Lyon looked to Gray wondering if he should carry him to bed or wake him; surprisingly, Natsu lifted Gray into his arms and, before Lyon could protest or anything, headed into the hotel towards the room they were staying in. The three boys were sharing a room while Lucy had her own.

When Lyon reached the room, Natsu had already settled Gray into the bed and was resting beside him; leaving the other bed for Lyon. However, after today Lyon really didn't feel like being too far from Gray. So he laid down on Gray's other side, careful not to disturb the other two, the bed was big enough for the three mages (if just barely). Lyon fell asleep to the reassuring, rhythm of Gray's breathing.

 **~TBC~**


	5. Final chapter

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fairy Tail

 **Note:** I am so so so sooo sooorrryy about the huge wait. I know some may have thought that the previous chapter was the final and it may have been better that way but that is not the case. I've been terribly busy, life got to be a handful, but that is still not a good excuse. I hope this chapter helps with some of the wait time there was. I do truly appreciate all people who review, favorite and follow my stories; it is what helps me to continue with the stories, even if it doesn't seem like it. All mistakes are my own. I do so hope you enjoy the story!

* * *

 _The winter wind was whipping thick snow in every direction. Storm clouds blanketed the sky of the destroyed village beneath them. In the middle of the desolate scene stood a huge demonic figure. This eerie scene was an unfortunately familiar one that Gray had stepped into. As he suspected he saw Ur, in the distance, about to face off against that damn demon. He ran forward as fast as he could in futile hopes of stopping what he knew was coming. He was suddenly brought to a harsh stop as he ran straight into Lyon. Gray was stunned for a moment, stuck and unable to get past Lyon as he watched the demon destroy Ur yet again. He was unable to meet the older ice mage's gaze._

 _Lyon suddenly demanded, "What are you doing here, loser, get lost!" As Gray carefully glanced upwards, he noticed pale hands clenched into fists as the other continued his rant. "You can't help here, this was your fault in the first place. You have no right to be here, You're useless!"_

 _At that last statement, Gray's stunned eyes shot up to meet Lyon's inflamed ones, the younger mage struggled to find words for a moment. Then he stuttered the only thought going through his head, "I..I..I..thought..y.y..yo..you didn't bl..bla..blame me anymore?"_

 _The harsh glare the cobalt haired mage received made him wanted to sink into the ground as the elder ice mage spoke, "You are a complete fool if you so easily believed that years of hatred could be forgiven. I'll never stop blaming you and in fact I'm sure you deserve whatever pain comes your way."_

 _Stung, Gray jerked his head away, unable to continue meeting his older brother-figure's glower. He then noticed his Fairy Tail family standing in the distance. He thought of going to them, though he knew he deserved to hear all of Lyon's hatred, he couldn't help but want to be with others that didn't think he was worthless. However, the silver-headed mage got in his face asking, "What? Do you want your friends? Do you really think you deserve to have them, after what you've done? Really you should do them a favor and just go off and die alone. After all you're no good for them, you'll just end up getting everyone killed!"_

 _The young maker mage was stunned, crushed and speechless; he couldn't move as his gaze studied the ground trying to hold in his emotions. He could feel nothing but truth ringing in those words and he knew there was no lie there. Waves of despair and guilt washed over him as the words hit home. To make matters worse he felt a fiery punch hit him in the face, hard. Gray turned, with a hand on his cheek, to face a furious Natsu, who demanded, "What the hell Gray?! You bring nothing but disaster! Look at what you've done!"_

 _The hurt and shocked mage did as told, looking behind the dragon slayer to see that the scene had changed. His gaze fell upon the ruins of the Fairy Tail guild and all the members, besides the pink haired male, were dead. Suddenly, the demonic figure appeared behind Natsu and, before Gray could do anything, the demon struck the dragon slayer down._

As Natsu fell to the ground Gray jolted awake, sweat clinging to his skin and a silence scream caught in his throat. The ice mage jerked up into a sitting position, taking a moment to get his breath back. As he was waiting for his heart beat to return to normal he scanned the area, getting his bearings back. In the bright moonlight, shining through cracks in the blinds, he noticed he was in the middle of the pink haired slayer and the other ice mage; now that may have been comforting if he was in another state of mind. However, with the nightmare fresh in his head and horrible images still flashing he couldn't stay there; he had to move, leave, something besides sitting here. So with that he silently and carefully but quickly left the room, deciding he needed to take a walk and get some air. Some small part of his thoughts, not consumed with the nightmare, was numbly surprised that he didn't wake the others with his actions. He headed into a random forest (not too far from the hotel) no particular destination in mind, just aimlessly moving.

Not to long after Gray left, another mage tossed and turned; caught up in his own nightmare.

* * *

 _The demon roared as it prepared to attack. A silver-haired ice mage watched the scene from a distance. The mage saw that there was only one person in the way of the demon's attack. The sight of dark blue hair, shirtless torso, and glint of silver around the person's neck had Lyon's heart stopping. The huge beast was about to attack an unsuspecting Gray. Lyon tried to move and get to the younger mage before the demon but was held back by some unforeseen force. He tried shouting and using his magic but nothing worked. Lyon could only watch in panicked horror as the demon's attack struck a surprised Gray. He helplessly watched his brother fall to the ground with a hole through his chest. Gray's back hit the ground, blood spurting from his body._

Lyon jolted awake, gasping for breath. As the shaking mage took a moment to get his breath back, sweat glistening on his face, he scanned the room for his younger brother. He needed to see the other ice mage alive and breathing; however, his fears rose anew as he realized the younger one wasn't in the bed beside him nor did he spot him anywhere in the room. The only other person there was the snoring dragon slayer, who was mumbling something about food. Lyon's panic grew and he hastily hopped off the bed, stumbled through the midnight lit room and blindly ran out the door. Not stopping till he was outside the hotel, he then realized that he had no clue where Gray could have gone. He thought about waking the annoying slayer so as to use that nose of his to find the other creator mage; however, before he moved a rabbit caught him by surprise and he watched it hop into the woods. He noticed a new trampled path where the rabbit had gone, instinct told him to head that way so he did. He followed this random, hazardous path for what seemed like hours; not even completely sure it was the right direction but not willing to give up yet.

Just as the silver haired male was about to give up and go get Natsu's help he caught a glimpse of moonlight bouncing off of navy hair and a hint of a silver glow from jewelry. Lyon froze as he realized it was Gray sitting against a tree with his knees pulled up to his chest and hands pulling lightly at his hair. Overwhelming relief washed over Lyon as it sunk in that the younger male was alright and his nightmare wasn't true. He took a moment to collect himself, pushed his hands into his pockets and gingerly approached his fellow ice mage. Wanting to reach out and touch Gray to make sure he was real and alive, Lyon placed a hand on the other's shoulder as a way of reassurance and to get his attention.

Lyon pulled his hand back as Gray harshly flinched away from his touch. Both mages were shocked by each other's actions and met each other's gaze. Lyon got a clear look at the anguish and guilt lurking in the depths of the raven-hair's onyx eyes before Gray turned away. Lyon felt like he had been sucker punched in the gut seeing that look on the younger one's face; he had foolishly hoped things could be so easily fixed with the conversation they had earlier. He had known that there was more to discuss; however, he came to realize he hadn't really wanted to mostly because he wasn't sure what to say that would help. The elder mage sat down beside the obviously hurting man, still stuck on what to say that would make the pain and guilt, he helped build up, disappear. So they sat in unassuming silence, both contemplating very different ideas.

The seemingly endless silence was interrupted when the younger ice mage started thumping his head against the tree, apparently having forgotten about the other's presence. Gray was lost in his own world of guilt, misery, and sorrow; he couldn't understand how someone would have came after him to help. He didn't see how he deserve anyone's attention, why they couldn't leave him to drown in these painful emotions; some part of his consciousness had realized that the older ice mage hadn't left and was beside him. However, it didn't really register with him until ice-cold hands gently grabbed his face, stopping him from getting seriously injured by a tree. Gray's tearful eyes met with Lyon's face in front of him, pale-hands still encasing his face. Gray was met with a sight that jarred him; Lyon, his older brother-figure, had unshed tears in his eyes. The older ice-make mage rested his forehead against the younger's, both letting silent tears fall for grief and guilt, old and new.

Lyon didn't know what to do when Gray had flung his head against the hard wood; so he moved without thinking. Now the two brothers sat beside each other again, after they had calmed down. Still not a word had been said, Lyon was wary of breaking the now more comfortable silence. He knew there was still something to be said, but damn if he knew what. Simple words couldn't get Gray to stop his way of thinking. All he could think about was the saying: "Time heals all wounds."

"Bullshit," the older ice mage thought, "Gray wouldn't be like this if that was true. People just find separate ways of coping for life."

Lyon's thoughts were interrupted by the younger's broken whisper "Do you believe I deserve friends? Do I deserve to be happy?"

The older maker mage's heart shattered at those words, he was appalled and upset by those questions. However, he didn't need to ponder the answer, "Yes," he firmly stated, without hesitation. He was about to continue further but was interrupted again.

"I know you don't blame me for what happened, but did you truly mean it? After years of hatred do you truly care?" On some level Gray was knew that Lyon had changed and didn't hate him like he used to and they had even gotten closer since then. They did get along sometimes in the past before Ur's death, so it wasn't all hated between them. But the nightmare and anniversary had damage the work they had done, at least on Gray's side.

Lyon was hurt when he heard Gray but he could understand somewhat, he took a moment to formulate a response. He couldn't screw this up; he reached out and gently lifted Gray's chin to meet his gaze. "Do you know what woke me up tonight?"

Gray stared at his older brother-figure in pure confusion; wondering where this was going, "Me?" the navy hair youth questioned, "When I got up?"

There was a slight smirk, "No, surprisingly, we'll talk about your cat-like sneaking skills another time." Then back to serious, "What woke me was a terrible nightmare, granted that isn't so unusual on this anniversary. However, it wasn't a nightmare I was prepared for at all." The older mage paused for a bit, remembering the nightmare that hadn't lost its vividness within the short time.

Gray watched his older brother in curious concern, Lyon had looked away, staring into the horrid nightmare no doubt. The younger mage reached out and softly pressed his hand to the other's cheek getting his attention, and asked "Are you okay?"

Lyon stared in awe at his younger brother, who he knew was hurting so much worse and was reaching out to him. Lyon cleared his throat and nodded in answer to Gray's question. He then continued his tale, "In the nightmare, I watched you died, Gray. I couldn't do anything to stop it and it was terrifying and seemed so real. When I woke up and didn't see you, I feared that the nightmare was a reality and I felt my world freeze for a moment. I can't lose you too, not after all we have been through. I've made some mistakes, you've made some mistakes; there has been some bad times between us but I wouldn't trade you for the world. I'm not sure what else I can say or do to prove that I truly care, but I mean every word and I hope it is enough."

Gray stared at him for a moment, letting the words sink in. It was so overwhelmingly reassuring that he could feel happy tears but they didn't fall. Gray managed a chocked "Thank you, it means more than you can believe."

The ice mage brothers sat there for a few moments, enjoying the company. They both knew that this didn't magically fix everything, both still have their own issues; however, it helped for tonight and possible began to fix some of the cracks within them both. Suddenly, Gray let out a huge yawn and Lyon spoke up, "I believe we should head back, it is way past your bedtime little brother."

Gray glared at Lyon catching his teasing tone; he childishly stuck his tongue out at his older brother. To which Lyon just rolled his eyes as he got up and helped Gray up as well. As the early sun started to creep up on the horizon the two brother's headed back towards the hotel where a sleepy dragon slayer and a crazy blonde were waiting.

 **~The End~**


End file.
